Day 41: 10,000 Feet

We did a lot of climbing today. From camp at 8,000 feet, we climbed up over 10,000, back down to 9,000, then back up over 10,000 again. The elevation and the weight of our packs made for slow going today with plenty of breaks, but we still managed 20 miles with plenty of daylight left. The views all day were spectacular, and it is almost shocking how quickly we went from having no water in the desert to being around it all day long here in the mountains. We crossed so many streams today we barely carried more than half a liter each of water. We’ve also been seeing more wildlife: deer, marmots, chipmunks. The terrain is definitely tougher than the desert, but the scenery is totally rewarding. We’re camped at 10,300 feet tonight, and tomorrow we will climb over 11,000.